The Dubai skyline in the background of the Teams call could hardly be more impressive: modern high-rises, international business activity and a market that still fascinates many German companies while also raising many questions. And yet Holger Ochs, Managing Director of InterGest Middle East, does not begin the conversation with big numbers or spectacular developments, but on a very personal note.
“I come from a traditional working-class family and was the first not only to complete secondary school, but also to earn a university degree.”
This sentence says a great deal about the path Holger Ochs has taken: shaped by down-to-earth values, a willingness to learn and the ability to seize opportunities even when the next step initially seems anything but predictable.
After his first professional positions at DATEV, Ernst & Young and Rödl & Partner, his career led him to a smaller tax advisory firm in Erlangen near Nuremberg. There, his employer pursued the ambition of standing out in the market by building international structures. After around six months, the call came from Dubai: would Holger Ochs be willing to establish a consulting firm there?
That was in 2001. At the time, Dubai still felt far away for many people in Germany – geographically, economically and mentally. There was little information available, hardly any established experience to draw on and, above all, many open questions. At the same time, a development was beginning that would fundamentally transform Dubai in the years to come.
Holger Ochs accepted the challenge. Since tax matters played only a minor role in Dubai at the time - VAT was not introduced until 2018 and corporate tax not until 2023 - additional tasks soon became part of his work. Among other things, he established another branch in China and spent several years commuting between Shanghai, Dubai and Germany. It was an intense period in which international work, cultural understanding and pragmatic solutions became part of everyday professional life.
Holger Ochs came to InterGest in a way that almost only happens in true entrepreneurial stories: by coincidence. A classic mailing, sent by post at the time, reached InterGest in Sarreguemines. As a result, Holger Ochs was invited to meet the team. Before the appointment, he researched InterGest and initially had the impression that it was mainly a logistics company.
When he arrived in Sarreguemines, he took a taxi at the station and asked to be taken to InterGest. The taxi driver laughed and pointed to the entrance directly behind him. After all, the address was “Place de la Gare” (Station Square).
At the office, he was asked to wait briefly. While sitting there, he happened to overhear a phone call through the door from Dr Heinz Anterist, the founder of InterGest. Apparently, he was speaking about “the new partner for Dubai” who had now arrived. What at first sounded like a surprising anticipation of events soon became reality: detailed discussions followed, Heinz and Peter Anterist paid a return visit to Erlangen, and eventually the decision was made that Holger Ochs would indeed become the InterGest partner in Dubai.
He attended his first Annual Meeting in Shanghai in 2007. It was there that he became particularly aware of what defines InterGest: an international network of experienced entrepreneurs who are at home in their respective countries and, at the same time, work closely together across borders.
Today, InterGest Middle East in Dubai stands above all for one thing: solution-oriented support in the day-to-day business of international companies.
“We solve problems.” says Holger Ochs. “We take care of all the administrative matters for our clients that would cost them a great deal of time and effort and where you would have to learn first how things really work.”
The tasks include Corporate Services in the broadest sense: support with administrative processes, assistance with banking matters, visa and residency issues, real estate questions, employee assignments, company administration and many other practical matters related to a local presence. Companies do not have to learn every local process themselves, but can rely on experienced contacts on the ground.
Today, the InterGest Middle East team consists of eight employees, two of whom work remotely from the Philippines. The personal structure of his team is particularly important to Holger Ochs. New employees often join through recommendations from the existing network – through people whom the team trusts. This “family strategy” also shapes the way the team works with clients.
During onboarding, everyone involved sits together at one table. The new client gets to know the team and can help decide who they would like to work with particularly closely in the future. This creates a personal connection from the very beginning and lays the foundation for trust.
For Holger Ochs, the fact that InterGest Middle East is now often recommended to others is a sign that this way of working is effective. In addition, the global InterGest network regularly generates new mandates. Many companies already know InterGest from other countries and are aware that they will find a familiar way of working in Dubai as well.
Dubai itself has changed significantly over the past two decades. The location has become more international and more professional, but also more demanding in many respects for foreign investors. That is precisely why local experience is essential. Anyone who wants to succeed in a dynamic market needs more than general information: they need someone who understands local processes, can assess changes and, based on many years of expertise, knows which solution makes sense in which situation.
From Holger Ochs’ perspective, the adaptability of the location becomes particularly evident in challenging times. The United Arab Emirates have shown in many situations that they can respond quickly to challenges, implement decisions consistently and thereby keep economic activity largely stable even during times of crisis. For international investors, this means that entrepreneurial opportunities continue to exist in the UAE and the wider Gulf region – but they need to be supported professionally.
For InterGest Middle East, this role is clearly defined. The team supports companies in understanding local requirements, managing administrative tasks reliably and keeping their focus on what matters most: their own operating business.
After 20 years in Dubai, Holger Ochs looks back not only on the successful development of a company, but also on a personal journey shaped by courage, trust and many encounters. What began with a letter and a conversation in Sarreguemines has become an established InterGest presence in the Middle East.
And even though Holger Ochs says today that he works a great deal – often more than he would actually like – there is no regret in his words. Rather, there is the calm confidence of an entrepreneur who has built something and is now preparing the next step: handing over more responsibility to his team and carrying the special culture of InterGest Middle East into the future.
“Let’s see whether I manage to put that into practice,” he says with a smile.
Perhaps this is exactly the attitude that best describes this story: not planning everything down to the last detail, but recognizing opportunities, taking responsibility and building something sustainable step by step with the right people by your side.
20 years of InterGest Middle East are therefore a strong example of what distinguishes InterGest worldwide: local expertise, personal trust and the art of successfully supporting international business where it actually takes place – on the ground.
Learn more about business in Dubai here.
